Freedom, at last! You are finally away from your parents, and you get to do whatever you want! Or so you thought. We were told by older siblings and relatives about how fun and carefree college is. We were pumped! but we had no idea what we were getting ourselves into. These are only five of the many myths we believed to be true about college.
1. College is no work, all play.
Everyone told us that at college, all you do is party. You drink some beer, smoke some weed, and repeat. We were told that you only have to write a couple of essays for each class every semester, and the rest of time is ours. Boy, were we wrong. I think the first year of college turned out to be working, stressing out about how much work you have, small amount of free time which you have devoted to sleeping and resting your tired soul, and you are left wondering if you really need a bachelor degree to get a job because you ar running solely on caffeine and some granola bars.
2. You are going to be best friends with your roommate forever.
I did not get along with my roommate. We didn’t see eye to eye on what time should the light be off, how often we should clean the room, and so on. Once you have seen someone naked involuntary, it all becomes a little too much. Living in a 12 square feet by 16 square feet space with another human being is going to be hard. Of course, some people became best friends with their roommates and chose to counties to live together in the following school year, but it is entirely unrealistic to expect that to happen to everyone.
3. No one even mentioned how much being alive costs.
This is something that no one ever told to me. The first week of college, I went to Ikea and Target to get everyday things like a trash can, some q-tips, and snacks, and it ended up costing me a fortune. You have to pay for everything. Sooner or later, you’re googling just how many times can you eat Mac & Cheese for meals before your body gives out.
4. How different professors are from high school teachers.
You could ask your professor “How was your day?” and they will reply “It’s in the syllabus.” Many professors teach a lot of different classes at different colleges and they have no idea when your midterm is. They also expect you to keep a single sheet of A4 paper titled “syllabus” for an entire semester, so good luck.
5. You will miss your parents.
You will not want to admit this, but this is your first time leaving your parents whom you’ve relied on for the last 18 years of your life and you are scared. You miss the security and the ability to turn to them whenever you are in trouble and expect all problems to be fixed, but you don’t have that luxury in college anymore.
However, college is an amazing adventure that will lead to some great things. You will grow into a stronger, more independent person who will have enjoyed every second of your college career.
